Pittsburgh Synagogue Attack Trial: Woman Recounts Stepping Over Body

PITTSBURGH, PA — Carol Black was hiding in a storage space with Mel Wax during the Tree of Life synagogue attack when Wax, who was 87 and hard of hearing, opened the storage door apparently believing the carnage was over.

Seconds later, she watched as Wax was shot to death.

Black, 71, took the witness stand Wednesday in the second day of the trial of Robert Bowers, 50, who is accused of gunning down 11 synagogue congregants in an October 2018 shooting rampage. The crime is the nation's worst-ever antisemitic attack.

Bowers' defense attorney already has admitted he committed the massacre, saying in her opening statement Monday that he entered the synagogue "and shot every person he saw." That his guilt is not in doubt leaves the trial's largest looming question as to whether he will receive the death penalty the prosecution is pursuing.

Bowers faces 63 charges, including multiple charges of hate crimes resulting in death, according to the Department of Justice.

Black testified that she and fellow congregant Barry Weber hid in the storage closet for what "felt like a year" before police rescued them. She recalled having to step over Wax's body to exit, then recounted that she soon learned that her brother Richard Gottfried, 65, a prominent Pittsburgh dentist, had died in the attack.

Gottfried's voice was heard in the courtroom, as his 911 call to report the attack moments before he died was played for jurors.

“There’s gunfire,” he said.

This report contains information from the Associated Press.